THE Government's aid package for farmers is 'like giving an aspirin to comeone with a life-threatening condition', says the new Conservative spokesman for West Devon and Torridge.
Geoffrey Cox, who made the comment during a fact-finding visit to farms in the constituency, also described the package as 'spin disguising reality'.
He said: 'Mr Blair will probably pose as the saviour of agriculture again. But he has merely agreed to Conservative demands to draw down the EU assistance to compensate for the strength of the pound, as he should have done long ago.
'The rest of the measures will be insignificant here in the South West.'
Mr Cox said he was astonished to see the amount of regulation farmers had to negotiate. 'Many local farmers are suffocating under the weight of unnecessary, largely EU-driven bureaucracy and regulation, compounded by Government indifference and what often seems almost like official harassment.
'The desperate need is for a government that tackles the roots of the problem, listens and acts promptly to free farmers from these sorts of burdens and to create a fair market place. But for that you would need a government that cares about farming and rural communities.
Mr Cox, accompanied by Okehampton and Hatherleigh NFU chairman James McInnes, spent several hours on three different farms reflecting some of the diversity of agriculture in the region.
He said it was the start of a planned programme of visits and private meetings he would be holding with farmers and those in farm-related industries all over the constituency.